Ukraine: What Everyone Needs to Know

By: Serhy Yekelchyk

Narrated by: Joel Richards

Ukraine's sudden prominence in American politics has compounded an already-widespread misunderstanding of what is actually happening in the nation. In the American media, Ukraine has come to signify an inherently corrupt place, rather than a real country struggling in the face of great challenges. Ukraine: What Everyone Needs to Know addresses Ukraine's relations with the West, particularly the United States, from the perspective of Ukrainians. The book explains how independent Ukraine fell victim to crony capitalism, how its people rebelled twice in the last two decades in the name of democracy and against corruption, and why Russia reacted so aggressively to the strivings of Ukrainians. Additionally, it looks at what we know about alleged Ukrainian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, the factors behind the stunning electoral victory of the political novice Volodymyr Zelensky, and the ways in which the events leading to the impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump have changed the Russia-Ukraine-US relationship.

This volume is essential listening for anyone who wants to understand the forces that have shaped contemporary politics in this increasingly important part of Europe, as well as the international background of the impeachment proceedings in the US.

©2015, 2020 Oxford University Press (P)2020 Tantor

Informative, but dry.

The breakdown of key topics creates an easy to follow flow of information. The performance was clear and easy to follow, though overall, dry.

Weird Narration

A lot of these reviews are saying that the narrator is “flat”, but that doesn’t quite do it justice. Imagine someone telling you something very important, in the same room as a sleeping baby that he’s desperate not to wake. He is aggressively whispering at you the whole time. There’s nuance in his voice, but all within a whisper. It took a while to get used to it.

Crying out for a pdf

Not being familiar with Ukrainian names, and places, a pdf would have improved this book greatly. I would have rated it a 4 or 5 if there had been a good pdf. It is to the point and well presented,

Informative and Enlightening

Great book. Ukrainian history written by a Ukrainian born scholar. Maybe it doesn't fit American partisan views, but definitely a valid, well informed perspective.

great!

very relevant and succinct! good overview of how we got where we are today.

Historical Ukraine text book

This is a long view look at Ukraine's history, not current events. Not bad though.

A Must Read

Originally published in 2015, updated to include only Zelensky's first year in office, this book provides more, and more nuanced, insights into the current global crisis sparked by Putin's invasion of Ukraine than anything else I've read. The last 10 minutes alone are worth the price of listening, for the clear way they explain the whole Trump phone call / Manafort / 2016 election / Russian interference mishegas. Fantastic resource!

Read (listen to) this!

Good Survey of Events and Issues

This is a good read/listen for anyone wanting a nice overview of and introduction to the topic. It doesn’t bog itself down with too much detail while still remaining usefully informative.
At times, objectivity does seem to be lost—particularly about more recent events—but it never gets preachy and does not distract from the topic at hand. This book certainly could pique one’s interest and give a baseline for further, deeper study into what exactly led the US and NATO into their proxy war with Putin.
Very timely. I enjoyed it.

Comprehensive, even-handed

Slight pro-Ukrainian nationalist bias, but coverages recent events and their origins fairly and thoroughly.


The controversies over eastern Slav identity are examined with a long view and most of the major claims are given at least a brief examination. Ukraine's real neo-nazi issues are covered. Other books are available to hammer away on the point from a Russian view, but this one will at least look it square in the face before moving on.


The fighting in the Donbas, Zelensky's election, Tymoshenko's fall from grace.... the entire saga of controversies with Russia starting at the Orange Revolution and ending at Covid are covered in great depth.


Don't let the review from the grumpy Trump enthusiast turn you off. The book by no means ignores the scandal surrounding Hunter Biden. At the same time it does take a hard look at the Manafort connections in Ukraine.


A thoroughly enjoyable book even if you have a slight pro-Russian lean as I do.

Important history and current events

Ukraine has obviously become front page news since Russia’s invasion and unprovoked war against this sovereign nation.
I thought that getting some basic background about Ukraine would be helpful in following the conflict, thus I eagerly enlisted this book in my quest for a deeper understanding of the land of my family’s roots.
This book does a better than average job of putting Ukraine’s history, as well as current events into context. But, it leaves me wanting more.
While it’s not everything everyone needs to know on the topic of Ukraine, it’s certainly better than what most Americans know — which is sadly not much!
While it’s not super entertaining, nor does the narrator keep the listener at the edge of his/her seat, it’s definitely a worthwhile listen.
Hopefully this book will be a catalyst for learning even more about Україна … as it has been for me.